By the Waters of Babylon

Theres delicate poetical imagery in Robert Schenkkans 2005 drama about the meeting of and fleeting romance between two exiles in an Austin suburb. That delicacy, however, is saturated by generic chat between the characters and a somewhat predictable romance. You know a plays in trouble when a gun has to be drawn in order to elicit some palpable drama. Thats no slight against the actors  Demian Bichir and Shannon Cochran  whose sincere and layered interpretations of a Cuban gardener and his deeply troubled white female employer keep the action watchable. This is a play that unearths the past about how they got to where they are  stories of their respective betrayals, as both victims and perpetrators, their guilt and their defenses as lifes hardships have piled up against both of them. So the drama consists of them meeting, courting, spurning that courtship, her regrets over their one-night stand, and the stories that spill from both of them with far too much ease to be an entirely plausible reflection of the grief theyve both suffered. Michael Ganios ornate set consists of an outdoor jungle of pampas-grass for Act 1, which yields to the womans bedroom in Act 2. It has a kind of cinematic realism that seems at odds with the metaphysics the play is driving at  where freedom is the freedom to imagine. Neither the play nor the set asks for much imagination on our part. Geffen Playhouse, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Westwood; Tues.-Thurs., 7:30 p.m.; Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 4 & 8:30 p.m.; Sun., 2 & 7 p.m.; through Dec. 7. (310) 208-5454.
Tuesdays-Thursdays, 7:30 p.m.; Fridays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 4 & 8:30 p.m.; Sundays, 2 & 7 p.m. Starts: Nov. 5. Continues through Dec. 7, 2008

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